China’s industrial companies reported an increase in their profits in the January to February period. However, compared with December 2017, the pace of growth slowed.
Industrial profits rose by 16.1% to 968.9 billion yuan in the first two months of the year. In December, profits advanced by 10.8%, while in 2017 the growth came in at 21% year-on-year.
The construction boom that raised prices for building materials stands behind the fast pace of growth.
Higher growth compared with December was largely due to accelerated sales and ongoing efforts to reduce costs, offsetting lower prices.
Analyst at Shanghai-based ANZ David Qu predicts double-digit growth in profits for the rest of the year, despite the slowdown in prices.
